June 09--The criminal justice system relies on truthful testimony, Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez said after four veteran police officers -- three from Chicago and one from Glenview -- made their initial court appearances Monday on charges they lied under oath in court in a drug case last year.
"We expect it from our witnesses, and we demand it from our police officers," Alvarez said in a statement.
The four -- Chicago police Sgt. James Padar, Officer William Pruente, Officer Vince Morgan and Glenview Officer James Horn -- turned themselves in to authorities Monday morning and appeared in bond court at the Leighton Criminal Court Building.
They each have been charged with felony counts of perjury, obstruction of justice and official misconduct and face probation up to five years in prison if convicted.
The charges come after a video contradicted the officers' sworn testimony during a March 2014 court hearing into whether they had properly followed procedures before making an arrest in a drug investigation. The surfacing of the video was first reported by the Chicago Tribune.
A fifth officer, also from Glenview, was not charged after she admitted that her testimony before the video was played in court was not accurate, prosecutors said.
Attorney Daniel Herbert, who represents Horn, said his client had made mistakes in his testimony but did not commit perjury. Prosecutors must prove the officers intentionally lied about a fact that was relevant to the case, Herbert said. He said Horn was "shook up" on the witness stand.
"There's a huge difference between a mistaken testimony and perjury," Herbert said. "Mistaken testimony happens dozens of times every single day in this building alone. And we're pretty convinced based on what we've seen that at the end of the day that it will come out that this is nothing more than mistaken testimony."
But Alvarez told reporters outside the courtroom that what the officers had done "clearly is perjury."
"It's more than mistaken testimony," she said. "The video contradicts directly the sworn testimony of the officers."
Padar, Pruente and Morgan -- Chicago narcotics officers -- had asked for help from Glenview police while making a traffic stop in the north suburb in June 2013. The officers had been watching 23-year-old Joseph Sperling, a restaurant worker, when they pulled him over and found up to a pound of marijuana in his car and a small amount of a recreational drug commonly known as mushrooms, according to prosecutors.
Pruente, one of seven Chicago narcotics officers working the case that day, testified that he pulled Sperling over after the Glenview man failed to use his turn signal. Pruente said he smelled marijuana in the car while waiting for Sperling to hand over his driver's license and insurance.
He then ordered Sperling out of the car and found the marijuana inside a black backpack on the back seat of Sperling's gold Ford Taurus, according to his testimony.
The other officers took the stand and backed up Pruente's version of the stop, to one degree or another, before Sperling's lawyer played police video of the traffic stop.
The video, a copy of which was obtained by the Tribune, showed Pruente walking up to the car, reaching through the open driver's window, unlocking the door and having Sperling step out of the car. Sperling was then frisked, handcuffed and led to a squad car while his car was searched.
Sperling's attorney, Steven Goldman, had subpoenaed the video -- taken from a Glenview sergeant's squad car at the scene that day -- and surprised prosecutors and officers with it during the hearing.
The video led Cook County Circuit Judge Catherine Haberkorn to suppress the search and arrest, leading prosecutors to quickly dismiss the felony charges. All five officers were later stripped of their police powers and put on desk duty pending internal investigations.
"Obviously, this is very outrageous conduct," a transcript of the March 31 hearing quoted Haberkorn, a former county prosecutor, as saying. "All officers lied on the stand today. ... All their testimony was a lie."
A Chicago police spokeswoman said Monday morning the investigation into the incident is ongoing and added that an internal investigation was "immediately launched" and the officers were stripped of their police powers after the department learned of "the disturbing allegations."
"Chicago police officers are expected to maintain the highest level of integrity at all times," police spokeswoman Jennifer Rottner said in a statement. "The (department) will continue to fully cooperate with the (Cook County state's attorney's office.)"
Cook County Public Defender Amy Campanelli said false testimony by police officers remains a broader problem and the charges should send a message to police Chief Garry McCarthy.
"Police officers still walk in and take the (witness) stand thinking they can say whatever they want," she said. "They need to be held accountable because when they are not the entire system fails."
"It sends a message to Garry McCarthy that he needs to know his staff and ensure they are held fully accountable whether it's a purposeful mistake or nonpurposeful."
Campanelli also praised the trial court judge who heard the drug case for taking a stand.
"Judge Haberkorn was so courageous for doing what she did. I commend her, there are judges who believe police officers just because they are a police officer even if they are impeached in their testimony."
"Let's remember Jon Burge. The majority of the cases where Jon Burge and his crew were involved, the criminal defense bar filed motions to suppress statements based on torture, and the judges looked the other way."
The city of Chicago and Glenview paid a combined $195,000 to settle a federal lawsuit filed by Sperling last year.
sschmadeke@tribpub.com
